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When one chooses to live and strive towards a certain philosophical idea, one has to be truly certain that this is something that they want to devote their lives to.
Far too often, people are simply too gung-ho and devote themselves to something that they have no idea about, simply because it seems appealing at the moment. That is something very dangerous to do.
When you are born, you are born with a blank philosophical canvas. Thus, we foolishly believe, it is up to our parents, family and other "people" to teach us what to believe, so we can obtain a philosophy and a moral code of Ethics that, supposedly, "fits us." Though this may seem like a inevitability of life, that is as far from the truth as we can get.
As children, we are hand-fed not only food by our families, but beliefs - ideas - life values. We are almost forced to believe something that we may not truly embrace, simply because the "group" of our families suggest we believe something. We may love our families, as I do, but we had to admit that every person has a flawed ego. We are subject to the same maladies of the soul and the same prejudices. My family, like many, are flawed, as am I. But I would rather be flawed in making a decision for myself, than having a group of equally-flawed people choose one for me.
To obtain a philosophy that is close to our hearts, we must first, and only, look within ourselves. What do we believe? What is certain in our lives? How do we love? How do we hate? How do we live? How do we breathe?
We have to thoroughly vet our own lives, before we can decide upon a life philosophy that fits us like a well-tailored glove.
So, how then did it come to pass that I chose to embrace the philosophy of Objectivism? (Disclaimer: I have just started to study this philosophy and have no delved deeply into the minute specifics - most of my decision was based on general ideas, at this stage.)
I chose Objectivism because I have always lived life for my own self-interest. Growing up through school, I always worked for my own happiness. Everyone else ran into groups, but I always preferred the "self" moments - sitting there reflecting, rather than boisterously running with the group. Throughout high school, I felt exactly the same way. I never sacrificed my ethics for a friend, or even let alone a girl, as so many of randy and suspicious male friends did. I always striven for the path of my own ethics and my own value code.
Objectivism is a philosophy created by novelist Ayn Rand, who wrote such classic novels as The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged. I will not try and force the entirety of Objectivism into this one blog. The main focus of Objectivism is a focus on "The Self" - ourselves; our own personal selves. It involves a person living for their own "rational self-interest" as Rand puts it, rather than the interests of "The Group", which is a term that includes the entirety of the human race as a whole. It wholly focuses on a person loving themselves and striving for their own goals and ethics, above all else.
This is why I have chosen to embrace Objectivism: because I have always loved myself and I have always worked towards my own goals, regardless of what the group has said.
Early on, when I wanted to become an actor, "The Group" said - "No! You'll never amount to anything!"
When I wanted to become a Lutheran Pastor, "The Group" said - "You're too flawed to devote your life to God!
Even now, while I am striving to become a professional opera performer, "The Group" has said - "You'll never find any work! You'll end up working at McDonald's!"
Finally, I said, "Enough!" I then decided to devote my life to what made my "Self" happy, and not "The Group."
Objectivism is my answer to the problems of the world. How can one be wrong, if we only truly embrace our own ethical code? It's amazing to think that those old prejudicial "flaws" we are taught by society are "wrong" could really be embraced as a part of our lives as a positive trait! It's freeing to know that I can choose my own ethical code, even if that may mean embracing an idea that is traditionally seen as "wrong."
In these next few weeks and months, I will detail my life of living as a full-fledged Objectivist.
Time willing, I will catalog what I did that day, and how my Objectivist beliefs played into those decisions.
Hopefully by this, you will learn something about what it means for a person to live for their own interests, and how you can apply that to your own life, even if you don't ever plan on becoming an Objectivist!
We can all learn something about living to make ourselves happy, in ways we never thought possible.
Because,
To Fully Live our Lives, We Must Live for Ourselves in Life, Love and Work.
I find your views on objectivism interesting. It seems apparent you are trying to find your way through a morass of philosophical possibilities.
ReplyDeleteI wish you well in your struggle the possibilities. Context is everything. We are all on the roller coaster. Sometimes we ride in the car, sometimes we are laying on the tracks.
WHO IS JOHN GALT?